Led by Dr Marijana Baric and Dr Jade Stalker, this project examines equality, diversity and inclusion within a sector that is critical to the UK’s net zero ambitions but continues to face persistent workforce and skills challenges.
The research is a collaborative programme between ARU and the University of East Anglia, delivered in close partnership with industry bodies including the Offshore Wind Industry Council and RenewableUK.
Drawing on a multi-year, mixed-methods approach, the project explores how inclusion is experienced across offshore, onshore and office-based roles, and where well-intentioned EDI commitments break down in practice. Through interviews, surveys and participatory engagement with developers, operators and the supply chain, the research foregrounds employee voice and lived experience, with particular attention to gender, neurodiversity and intersectional inequalities.
A core strand of the work examines how job design, safety systems, informal norms and organisational practices shape access to opportunity, retention and progression within a highly regulated and operationally demanding environment. The project translates research findings into practical, sector-specific guidance aligned with industry people and skills strategies, supporting more inclusive, resilient and sustainable workforce development in offshore wind and contributing to debates on just transitions and the future of work in green industries.
In June 2026 this guidance was published as a suite of four Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Best Practice Guides for the offshore wind sector, released by the Offshore Wind Industry Council and hosted by RenewableUK. The suite comprises an overarching guide together with three targeted guides for senior leaders, HR professionals and line managers. Each is built around a shared ten-step roadmap, organised into four strategic moves: lead and be accountable, live the values daily, make it visible and co-created, and fix the systems. Together they give organisations across the sector a practical, evidence-based route from EDI commitment to sustained day-to-day change. You can read the full suite on the RenewableUK website.